MANAGER Mark Tallentire said Bracknell Town will need to sharpen up their attack following Saturday’s 4-0 defeat by Winchester City in the FA Cup, writes Dave Wright.

The Robins matched their Southern League opponents in most departments, but were let down by their finishing on a day when the Citizens were ruthless in front of goal.

“We lacked that extra bit of quality in the final third,” he admitted. “Our final ball let us down and it didn’t quite happen for one or two of our better players.

“This is something we need to correct if we are to be successful.

“They (Winchester) are the sort of side we want to be playing against next season, and we have got to learn that you have to take your chances when they come along.

“Obviously, we are all very disappointed as we don’t generally lose games at home, it’s the first time we have played here (on 3G pitch) and not scored.”

Yet, Town were fast out of the blocks in this preliminary round tie and dominated the opening stages in front of a crowd of nearly 250.

“It was the best period of the game for us,” commented Tallentire.

“We hit the bar – I thought it was in from the time it left his (Adam Cornell’s) foot – and we had other opportunities as well.

“Had we got our noses in front it might have been a different story.”

Town found themselves trailing 2-0 at the break and then early in the second half they were reduced to 10 men when left-back Rob Gerrard was sent off following two yellow-card offences.

Tallentire continued: “We played some decent football for the next 15 to 20 minutes, but again our final ball wasn’t great. We need that extra bit of quality, but it just wasn’t there.

“From then on it was an uphill struggle for us to shut them out.

“We gambled a bit by keeping two strikers on and playing three at the back, but we needed to score to get back in the game.

“It was a bit of gamble, something we don’t generally do, but we ended up running out of legs and they (Winchester) were able to add a couple of more goals.

“But in the end I think the score line was a bit harsh, to be honest.”

The Bracknell manager agreed everyone at the club was “disappointed”, admitting: “A cup run would have been great as it would have given us a nice little shot in the arm.

“There are financial rewards for a cup run, but it was not to be for us. It is now a matter of dusting ourselves down and moving on.

“We need to just put this one down to experience. We have loads to look forward to. We have got a couple of important league games coming up and we will now focus on them.”

The Robins, who have won both of their opening Hellenic League matches, take on Premier Division newcomers Woodley United on Saturday, followed by an eagerly-awaited derby with Binfield on Bank Holiday Monday.